


Study Date

by obenio



Category: Fate/Grand Order
Genre: Dorks in Love, Fluff, Gen, Gender-Neutral Pronouns, Romance, Study Date
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-16
Updated: 2020-07-16
Packaged: 2021-03-04 20:33:58
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,680
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25312384
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/obenio/pseuds/obenio
Summary: It was this pathetic feeling that led you to this predicament almost every day.
Relationships: Romani Archaman/Reader, Romani Archaman/You
Comments: 1
Kudos: 40





	Study Date

**Author's Note:**

> Is it too late for some Romani loving?

Impulse is what it was. Now blaming it on incompetence. It was only about time when you had finally escaped Mash and Fou and had deftly snuck across the hallways with the guise of being sound asleep in your room. Time was no longer much of a concept around these parts, much less on your body. There was no way to tell how early or late it was, only that you were missing out on much-needed sleep. Instead, you found yourself buried in between numerous books—literally.

The silence made each minuscule sound echo. It was the whizzing sound that startled you first. Standing on top of a ladder while reaching out for another hefty book, you stilled when you felt the ladder shift a little. No one was supposed to be around here at this hour, you thought. For sure, everyone was either at the command room or in their rooms, resting. The latest Rayshift was over with and everyone earned the right to rest. Whoever it was entering the library at this hour is incredibly insane and absurd—such as yourself. Shuddering, you fell off balance.

Sounds of crashes and a pathetic cry followed, prompting whoever opened the door to rush inside in haste.

You couldn’t see much, rather just book covers. You sneezed, the dust and smell of these old books filling up your nose. You didn’t know where you landed even, but you felt more books under you. Sluggishly, you moved, shoving the books off. Light eventually emerged and blinded you momentarily. A hand grabbed your arm and helped to shove the books away.

“You alright?” That voice. Immediately, you knew it was the head doctor.

He looked worried—like always. You nodded and gave him a reassuring smile. Romani was assessing you, looking for any injuries that might have sustained from the fall.

“I’m fine, really,” you reply.

“Why are you here, anyway?” He asked, a frown evident, “you should be sleeping.”

Romani’s hand reached out to you and helped you stand. His eyes scanned over the mess. There was a large number of books, all are of random topics, thus earning a confused look.

“What are you reading?” He asked once more.

A blush crept up to your cheeks, showing embarrassment. You sunk your head, not permitting the doctor to see your flushed expression. There was no way you would tell him the reason why you snuck onto the library. There was no time to make up a different excuse either. It seemed that the doctor found an answer within moments after scanning through the sprawled books once more.

“These books are all related to the past Singularities… and to your Servants,” he remarked, picking some of them up, “‘Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire’, ‘The Great Demarcation’, ‘Arthurian Legends’…”

His gaze landed on you and it felt like being stabbed by Cu Chulainn’s (didn’t matter which) Gae Bolg.

You couldn’t look at him, not at this state. There was no way you would tell him that you barely knew the stories of most of the Servants you’ve accumulated, barely knew the real history behind the Singularities you’ve been. You could not even tell Mash, feeling undermined by her vast knowledge despite not being able to set foot outside of Chaldea. All you could do, most of the time, was nod along and act like you knew a thing or two.

It was this pathetic feeling that led you to this predicament almost every day.

You could even barely get along with some of the Servants, always staring down at you with a look of contempt on their faces, only resigning yourself to admire them from afar. You knew they were great people, but how great exactly? Still, you are their Master. They followed their orders accordingly. But what good is a Master who doesn’t even know their own Servants?

Romani didn’t look judgmental or condescending as you expected. Instead, he had a warm, comforting smile. His gloved hand reached for your head, ruffling your hair.

“You could’ve just asked for my help… Chaldea’s database is vast and could help you find the information you need instantly,” he said, as a matter of fact.

“I know,” you replied. “It’s just stupid of me…” you trailed off, not knowing how to properly articulate your dilemma, “I just want to know about them or the places I’ve been to. And it seems like everybody else knows everything about anything.”

It didn’t seem like you were finished yet. Romani kept quiet, prompting you to talk a little more. “I’m their Master, I should know them best but honestly, I know jackshit most of the time. It’s embarrassing that I know nothing, that I couldn’t even tell Mash—or even Fou!”

The doctor was leaning on the bookshelf whilst you kept your arms crossed, hands fidgeting and clasping tighter than usual. “I couldn’t search Chaldea’s database since I don’t really know how to—I don’t even have a computer in my room,” was the last thing you said before sighing in defeat.

Somehow, the doctor understood—if his soft chuckle was of any indication.

“We only know because of Chaldea’s database giving us the right information when we need it. It’s got everything,” he said, in an attempt to make you feel better. “Even I, sometimes, don’t know much on a lot of stuff. Chaldea’s database sometimes just does all the talking, honestly.”

For the first time during your encounter, you lifted your head, meeting his emerald gaze. There was a question lingering on your head and it seemed like it wouldn’t hurt to ask. “Why is there a library here if everything is, as you said, is in Chaldea’s database?” You huffed.

Romani laughed once again, “well, sometimes, it’s nice to hold a book once in a while,” he said. “That’s what Olga Marie used to say.”

Your heart wrenched at the mention of the previous director, but for once, you agreed with her.

“What are you doing here anyway?” You asked, after a while of silence.

Romani helped with tidying up the mess you made, stacking the books into neat piles, regardless of topic. You both worked in comfortable silence up until now.

“I needed to get away for a moment,” he replied. “Since you’ve already occupied your room, I needed to find another.”

Briefly, you remember the first time you met the doctor. He was lounging on your supposed room, equally shocked as the door opened. While it may seem like a long time ago—it had actually only been months. How many though, you didn’t count. However, despite that, you instantly grew close to him. With as much free time you both have, conversations never ended. Also, the doctor always made it a point to check on you, making sure your vitals are still fine. Even after every Rayshift, you couldn’t satisfy his qualms even with medical assessments coming back positively or with your reassurances. Checking on you and Mash thrice as if he had to.

In a way, it was a warm feeling having people care so much. Mash, your Servants, and especially the doctor. Granted, you were the most vital asset for the mission (as the last Master of Chaldea, you needed to be taken care of seriously) but the amount of effort he poured into making everyone safe didn’t fail to churn and tug at your heartstrings. Whenever you would camp out or found yourself staring into nothingness during one of your missions, the sound of his voice amused you, soothed you, gave you the strength carry on. He was stern with his orders however he is also extremely compassionate. Something you’ve always admired about him. Frequently, he had scolded you for your stubbornness and insubordination, reminding you that if there is a misstep in your actions, it could endanger humanity’s future. But he couldn’t stay angry or disappointed for long. The mission always succeeded and you, Mash, and Fou returned mostly unharmed. He’d look at you silently, trying to maintain his anger, but it always dissipated, replaced by a proud smile and a warm welcome. It also didn’t help either that the doctor is insanely cute, even if he looked dead exhausted most of the time. Seeing his face once again only strengthens your resolve every time.

“I’m sorry again for startling you,” he said, chuckling as he scratched his nape.

A reassuring smile flashed from your face, “it’s okay,” you replied.

Backs pressed onto the sturdy bookshelf, both of you relaxed as you settled beside each other. The books were right in front of you, in horrifying tall piles.

Romani swept your hair off your face, “so what are you studying about?” He asked. “I might be able to help out with your research, though I might head back to the command room in about an hour or so. I don’t want to get Da Vinci too mad.”

Usually, Romani would’ve scolded you to get some rest but today, he looked lax. Somehow, you thought, the doctor understood you needed to do this for yourself. Besides, if he does berate you, you weren’t going to listen anyway. Any attempt would render it futile. You are that determined and stubborn.

Immediately, you averted your gaze and turned to the books, embarrassed that your face is heating up. He probably noticed, but he didn’t say anything that could embarrass you further. Hands prancing around the pile of books, you picked out the nearest one without a thought.

“The Literature of Ancient Sumer?” Romani picked it up from your hands.

Somehow, you calmed down as he was scanning through the contents in silence. You remembered reading that for about a few pages before you had to pick up another book about Sumerian History for a deeper perception.

After all, you owed it to Gilgamesh to study about his kingdom and his culture—he always looked very proud whenever he talks about it.

“The King sure is very fascinating,” Romani chuckled, setting the book down on his lap. “I could be able to tell you a few things but if you want, I can dig up the data we have on Ancient Sumer and give it to you.”

You chuckle at this, “you’re burdened enough,” you replied. “I can research it all on my own but if you already have some facts, please feel free to share.”

“Helping you is never a burden,” he said before drumming on his chest, “that’s practically my job.”

It wasn’t much but Romani gave it his best. You were able to gain some new facts about the ancient civilization. It was amusing for you how he looked uncertain whenever he told a fact and hastily scrambled to get another book just so he could confirm if whatever he said was indeed accurate.

“I swear, I did read about this,” he huffed after getting a supposed ‘fact’ wrong.

You laughed at his dilemma and he only grumbled more, running his hands through his ginger hair. Gently, you took the book away from him and closed it. “That’s enough Sumerian history,” you said.

He seemed to resign at your decision. However, the determination in his face didn’t falter a bit. You picked up another book from the pile, this time minding the title. Romani calmed down and patiently waited for your next pick. When _“The Most Powerful Idea in the World”_ was placed on his hands, he knew immediately about what is it about.

“The Industrial Revolution, I see,” he pondered for a bit, gathering his thoughts.

When he finally released a smile, your heart skipped a beat. He looked very excited to tell you everything he knew.

It continued on for who knows how long and honestly, you didn’t bother counting the minutes, maybe hours, spent inside the library with Romani. Every moment is pure bliss. To have him like this, relaxed and genuinely happy for once without the weight of an entire organization, of humanity’s future on his shoulders. You too, of course, as the last Master, this normal human experience rarely came by. Moments like this between the two of you hardly came by. So, you made sure to savor each moment of it—of him. Bit by bit, you learned a lot more things about your Servants’ backgrounds, the culture they have during their life and the history behind the Singularities you’ve been to. All of them fascinated you, thrilled at how amazing each of your Servants is. Throughout all of it, Romani was there beside you, capturing the elated expression on your face with a proud grin.

Nose buried in his book, he was reading a passage from it, finding some piece of information that could support his narrative when out of nowhere, he yawned. He couldn’t stop it and immediately apologized after. What he didn’t expect was the sudden weight on his shoulder.

Carefully, his head inclined, finding your frame leaning onto him. You were already sound asleep, snoring softly and somewhat drooling on your chin.

His free hand reached up to cup your chin, warmth seeping through his gloves and into his hand. You stirred a little and Romani slightly panicked. Fluttering your eyes open, only barely, your eyes met.

“Please sleep,” he said, his free hand brushing through your hair. “You’re gonna need it.”

“I should be saying that,” you muttered.

Romani wanted to chuckle but another yawn escaped his lips. He smiled faintly instead. Tenderly, he kissed your temple.

Warmth surged through your entire body. Romani, as ever, is such an endearing lover.

* * *

The hallways rang with the iterating calls for Chaldea’s last Master and the provisional head. After interviewing any of the Chaldea staff or fellow Servants she could find, Mash was still fruitless in her search. Fou sat on her shoulder, resting after sprinting ahead of the young woman to find their two most important staff.

Da Vinci met with her shortly after. An irked expression on her face. How dare Romani leave her to do everything for herself. Perhaps, he trusted the genius too much that he passed on all the work to her without her approval. The caster wouldn’t have been angry if he had just fallen asleep somewhere, but where exactly was the issue.

“Maybe they already eloped,” joked Merlin, but that only earned either looks of contempt, worry, or disgruntlement from everyone present in the room.

Mash almost took it seriously though, if it weren’t for Fou who whacked the great sage.

“If you’re still finding Master and the doctor, they are at the library,” said Andersen who popped out from nowhere. “Whether or not you want to disturb them, that’s up to you.”

This immediately grabbed Mash and Da Vinci’s attention and they dashed towards the direction of the library.

Chaldea’s library wasn’t that large. It was as large as the staff’s lounge or Da Vinci’s workshop but the number of books made up for it. Excluding the bookshelves that buried the titanium walls, they were organized into three rows, two shelves positioned in each. It was awfully congested; the air was stale and smelt of paper. Mash and Da Vinci found the Master and the doctor right away, situated in between two rows, surrounded by numerous piles of books.

Mash was about to wake them up when Da Vinci’s hand landed on her shoulder, “let them rest for now,” she whispered. “There are still a few more hours before the Rayshift is ready, for now, let them be.”

The young woman nodded. Although she would’ve wanted to have them rest in a more comfortable position, she knew that once they were awoken, they were never going to sleep again. Taking one last look at the both of them, a question lingered on her mind though, making a mental note to ask _senpai_ about why they were in the library.

* * *

Another successful mission. All in a day’s work. You couldn’t wait to seclude yourself in your sleeping quarters and finally sleep in a comfortable bed.

Mash and Ushiwakamaru were with you for this mission. With the samurai’s spontaneous Noble Phantasm, the enemies were wiped out, and all of you made it out safely through the enemy lines. Even as you returned back to the cold interiors of Chaldea, Ushiwakamaru remained at your side, overjoyed as she was able to help Master.

Romani was relieved, double-checking the whole party’s health before dismissing all of you. You reach out to lightly tap on his forehead, a victorious smirk on your face, “didn’t I tell you we had it under control?”

He only caught your hand, he had a disgruntled look on his face, indicating how exhausted he was. “Geez, you really have to learn how to take orders, you’re lucky I’m too exhausted to be angry,” he grumbled.

You didn’t like him being angry at you, you didn’t like disobeying orders either, however, sometimes, it was needed. There was no choice but to attack and break through despite the enemies’ overwhelming strength. You were indeed very lucky and grateful to have the female samurai with you on this mission.

“Please rest,” he said. “You’ve more than earned it.”

“And you?”

“I need to stay here and configure out the next Rayshift,” he replied.

Romani could sense the disappointment in you and frankly, he was disappointed too. He wanted to rest, even for a bit, just as much as you do but there was a lot of work needed to be done. You, of course, understood his predicament. There was not much you could do.

Maybe, you thought, it’d do him good if you and your party will follow his orders next time. No promises, though.

As you entered your quarters, silence immediately engulfed you. You were used to it, welcomed it even. The sound of the battlefield was too loud, too taxing. Even after all this time, you weren’t used to it. So, when your body, overworked and heavy, finally rested under the warmth of the blanket, everything felt infinitely better. You needed this, knowing that you deserved it, at least.

What was only missing was the doctor’s warmth and the sound of his steady breathing.

It can’t be helped though.

Just before you could close your eyes, something unfamiliar had caught your sight.

There lies, on top of your bedside drawer, a tablet. If memory serves you right, you never had a gadget to call your own. Only the communicator to which enables you to stay connected with Chaldea whenever you Rayshift. Curiosity seizes you, reaching out for it.

Said tablet was Chaldea-customed. You’ve seen the staff hold it often. Romani holds it instead of a coffee mug. Da Vinci has hers in her hand most of the time. You wondered.

As you searched through the database, you found some files downloaded into it. Thumbing through its contents, you were stunned.

Every bit of related literature, detailed accounts, and other related recordings about your Servants’ origins was neatly sited and organized. Suddenly, you remembered the conversation you had with the doctor prior to the mission.

He really did gather all the data available from Chaldea’s database and gave it to you—and organized too.

How long did that take? How much effort had that been? All of a sudden, you were awake, questions formed in your mind as you marched out of your quarters and towards the command room.

Passing by your Servants, you didn’t really pay attention to them. Tablet in hand and a furrowed look on your face, you were determined to give the doctor a piece of your mind.

Entering the command room, eyes landed on you right away. Da Vinci was happy to see you but she frowned as she reminded you to rest as much as you could. You acknowledged her concerns but you really needed to see the doctor right away. The caster immediately flashed a knowing smile when her eyes landed on the tablet at your hands.

When Romani returned to the command room, he was surprised when you dragged him out again, almost spilling his coffee and plate of croissants. You heard Da Vinci chuckling right before the door automatically shuts close. Both of you were alone in the hallway, you were glaring and he was gasping.

“I could’ve dropped my croissant!” He said in panic. “Emiya baked this just now, y’know! I was really looking forward to it!”

You held the tablet up, “you actually gathered up all the data? When did you have time for this? You were on comms for most of the mission, for fuck’s sake,” you chewed out at him.

He smiled sheepishly, “I managed to squeeze in some time…” he replied. “Da Vinci helped out with organizing them though…”

The mission did take about a week or so, there was a lot of spare time to squeeze it in.

“You didn’t have to do this,” you said, exasperated at his tendency to overwork. “I could’ve just accessed Chaldea’s database myself or went to the library.”

“Yeah, but…” he trailed off. Romani looked distressed. His mouth opened before closing them again a few times. He couldn’t really reach a proper explanation in a way that was coherent. Instead, he settled for shrugging casually.

Sighing, you calmed yourself. You appreciated his kind gesture, only that you wished that he didn’t have to do this much effort. A smile tugged at your lips as you tucked the tablet in between your crossed arms, “thank you though,” you said. “This’ll really help a lot.”

Romani grinned back. “Anything for you,” he gleamed. “After all, you are my job.”

He couldn’t really hold you since his hands were occupied with his snacks. You settled with tiptoeing and giving him an ecstatic kiss on the lips instead, cupping his cheeks with your warm hands. He gladly kissed back, inclining his head to meet yours. When you parted, he muttered, “go to sleep, okay? When you wake up, I’ll go through the research with you.”

You weren’t yet asleep, but you couldn’t wait to wake up.

**Author's Note:**

> Hope you liked it!  
> 1 kudos = 3 Saint Quartz.
> 
> Nah.. just joking.
> 
> Imagine studying with Romani though...  
> EDIT: Found some some grammar mistakes. YIKES. I hope it didn't inconvenience anyone


End file.
